Product Categories: Produce
Natalie’s Orchard Island Juice Company
This woman-owned and family operated company produces more than 16,000 gallons of all natural citrus juices each year. Their short and simple ingredients lists are familiar words that are easy to pronounce, with no additives, preservatives, or GMOs. The Florida-based juice maker boasts having the smallest carbon footprint in the juice industry, between sourcing locally, using recyclable packaging, and repurposing citrus waste at a nearby cattle farm. While New England weather bars local citrus, we picked Natalie’s because their values and eco-focus are much like our own, and the quality of their product is unparalleled.
Sunrise Orchards
Running on 100% solar power, this 200-acre apple orchard is on a mission to grow amazing apples that delight all five senses. They produce several apple varieties, including Cortland, Empire, Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, Macoun, McIntosh, Paula Red, and Red Delicious. They’ve been completely solar powered since 2016, and that includes growing, packing, and refrigeration. Their solar fields also create a nice habitat for many important pollinators, which helps keep the ecosystem running smoothly. Located in Cornwall, Vermont, Sunrise Orchards is IPM certified, and family owned.
Little Leaf Farms
The mission: great-tasting lettuce that’s available year-round. Local lettuce means making salads with a significantly smaller footprint than California mixes. These hearty little greens are free of GMOs, pesticides, and other chemicals. Because these lettuces are seeded, grown, cut, and packaged without ever being in contact with human hands, the need for triple-washing with chlorine-based chemicals is eliminated. The climate-controlled greenhouses make it possible to grow these baby greens 365 days out of the year, even in the coldest New England months.
Springworks Farm
The largest Aquaponic Greenhouse in New England, Springworks Farm grows organic greens year-round using 95% less water than a conventional farm. The sustainable aquaponic process works like this: tanks of fish are fed nutritious feed which turns into organic waste. The waste is filtered and refined into fertilizer and pumped into the greenhouse. The plants filter the water to the point that it is so clean that it can be pumped back into the fish tanks, and the cycle repeats. No chemicals. No soil contaminants. No pesticides. The result is fresh, clean lettuce with no waste; each crispy leaf in the pack is as delicious as the next.
FinAllie Ferments
Powered by probiotics and a love of traditional fermentation, glass blower turned farmer Allie and her dog Fin started out selling their products in Vermont farmers markets. Allie takes locally grown ingredients and ages them in oak barrels and ceramic crocks to create small batches of traditionally fermented sauerkraut. All of their products are vegan, raw, and vinegar-free to ensure that they deliver the best probiotics to the consumer. All of their supplier farms are located in Southern Vermont, because promoting eco-nomic resilience by keeping the flow of money and job opportunities local is one of their most important missions. Their commitment to quality as well as community is what makes them one of BRP’s shining stars.
Hemmingway Farms
Just across the river in Charlestown, New Hampshire stands Hemingway Farms with 90 sprawling acres of space to grow fresh fruits and veggies, herbs, shrubs, houseplants, and flowers. This local treasure also includes a seasonal farmstand where they display their own bounty as well as items from other local producers. Fortunately, there’s plenty to go around, so a portion of their plentiful harvest is also filling up the Black River Produce warehouse right before making its way to your kitchens, shelves, and dinner plates.
Sam Mazza Farm
Sam Mazza Farm is a 350-acre farm full of festival fun, fresh produce, and adventure featuring a pair of corn mazes totaling 3 miles long. Just don’t get lost! You wouldn’t want to be late for their Blueberry Breakfast! Mazza’s corn and blueberries, along with a host of other produce items, can be found occupying the warehouse shelves at Black River as well as bursting forth from their on-site farm market. Their special events are held in a recently built 40×60-foot covered pavilion to the left of the farm market, and adjacent to their children’s playground. You can find a whole host of Sam Mazza produce products at Black River Produce as well as gorgeous poinsettias in December.